How to do tech product sreencasts
26
-
Upload
david-strom -
Category
Technology
-
view
909 -
download
3
description
This is a lecture that I am giving in October 2011 at Syracuse University.
Transcript of How to do tech product sreencasts
Editorial management positions:
Strom of the past
The Old “Big Five” Tech Pubs
The New “Big Five” Tech Pubs
THE FUTURE: SCREENCAST PRODUCT REVIEWS
My overall stats
•65 Videos completed over three years•> 185,000 views on 20 different sites•Repeat business from Symantec, McAfee, BlueCoat, Alpha Software, Tune Up, and others!•Reposted at TomsITPro.com and a few other places
Skills required
•Can use the products involved•Think visually about what the end process will generate•“Visual storytelling”•Can write your narration and speak clearly, or have someone else read it for you•Understand the video and audio editing tools
Tools required old-school
Today's tools
•Piratepad.net for collaborative editing•audacity.sourceforge.net audio editing•techsmith.com/camtasia video editing•Wistia.com video embedding•Tubemogul.com posting•Wordpress.com blog
Today’s tools
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVahA1ZMgP0
It is catching on
Hour-long tutorial
Sound editing isn’t that hard!
Sound quality matters, too
•Speaking clearly, crisply, and engagingly is important•Synchronize with visuals•Prepare a script but don’t sound like you are reading from it
Workflow•Get an enterprise IT product, test it•Write a script, use static screen shots•Record the audio track•Match to visuals•Produce the video•Post around the Internet as much as you can
Screen resolution tips
•I record in 800x600•Many network-centric products are designed for >1280x1024•Use the zoom/pan feature sparingly, it is distracting and too much eye candy
YouTube matters. A lot.
Still the best place to showcase videosHalf of my views are there
But there are lots of other places too!
What to look for in video posting
•How much tech-based content is there already?•How much of it is how-to vs. just general interviews?•Can you create your own “studio” or brand easily?
Videojug.com transformation
Video = has to be visually interesting
•One video on email encryption was just static screens, nothing going on there!•Others have lots of action, activity, and jumping around screen to screen•Viewers can hit pause/rewind if they want to slow things down
You don’t have me at “Hello”
•But the issues using them matters, too.•A video on “applications visibility” looked at how to use WAN optimization products to examine what is going on over your network•Another for Symantec called “Stop Buying Storage” looked at deduplication features•Bigger and more well-known vendors attract more viewers faster just because folks are searching more on them!
It isn’t always about products
Build audience slowly
•And you will keep them longer, too•It isn’t always about “going viral”•A site needs regular infusions of new content, just like a magazine or newspaper, otherwise it dies!
Anchor video with text on Web page for better SEO
•Choose keywords carefully and consistently•Snappy titles help•Relevant vendor contact and pricing info critical too
